Sadie: After the War
by QuietReaderWriter
Summary: It's exactly a year after the war with the serpent, Apophis. Sadie Kane meets with Anubis once again. There aren't possibly any obstacles that will stand in between their relationship...right? Or are there? Well, let's just say when Sadie has two certain goddesses wishing to see her for one particular reason, it won't be so easy. MINOR plot change starting in Chapters 4-5.
1. Anubis Comes to Take Us to Our Parents

**This story has been revised and edited multiple times just so you all know. I think I'm pretty satisfied with the way it is now, so if you want to reread it, go ahead! I can say it's way better than how it was originally posted when I was eleven. Do not fear, however, as I haven't changed the course of events in the story, so rereading isn't necessary unless you want to.**

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><p><strong>Please tell me your <strong>**honest ****opinions! **

**DISCLAIMER: I'm writing the story but I don't own any characters, or TKC!**

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OK, so I can safely say I'm currently recording this a year after the (exhausting, horrible, tragic) battle with Apophis. Carter and I recently decided to record the events happening as of now, so we can update you all on things. Who knows? Sending out these tapes might gain us more young initiates for training here in Brooklyn. [And since I'm so much better than Carter, I'm going to narrate first for you all. Be thankful. I'm sure from hearing our previous tapes you think that Carter is a lousy storyteller, am I right? Admit I am the better narrator! Haha!]

Ah, yes, getting off topic...

So...where should I begin?

[Carter says that most of you are interested in my love life. Yeah, _right. _I mean, honestly. Why in the world would you be obsessed with me and two boys that I'm_ so_ torn about? One of them being an Egyptian god (Anubis), who is impossible for me to date, but I still very much like. And another one (Walt) who is mortal, sweet, caring, but (was) dying because of a curse. Where's the appeal to that? I don't understand.]

Anyway, if you are all really obsessed with my love life as Carter says, I guess I'll tell you about something that happened last week with Anubis (and my parents...). It started like this.

Carter and I were having a pretty good time in Brooklyn House after the war. Hanging out with our trainees, blowing stuff up with magic, Jaz having to break up fights between me and Carter, occasionally flirting with Walt, having unimportant arguments here and there, among other fun stuff. It was the first time we've altogether experienced a sort-of _normal_ life. I mean, we've all been having fun and doing regular mortal stuff (though we have never completely backed down from all the magic. Ever.). The gods haven't contacted us since the Defeat of Apophis celebration we had last year. Not even our godly father or ghostly Mum have wished to see us.

So, one day, on Saturday, I was in my room, listening to Adele on my iPod. I was staring at my painting of Anubis and thinking of him. _Goodness._ It didn't take much time, however, for me to realize that Adele was singing a love song and I was thinking of Anubis at the same time. Ugh. Maybe Adele should make a new album with topics other than men, I thought, as I turned off my iPod.

_"Sadie!"_ I heard Carter yell.

_What does he want?..._I went downstairs and asked Carter why he called for me.

"Mom and Dad want us to go to the Land of the Dead to them; they want to talk with us."

"How do you know this?" I asked, wondering where he all of a sudden got this from.

"Well, first, Anubis is here; and he's told me about it." Carter said, gesturing towards Anubis' direction.

I turned around and saw the most gorgeous guy in existence. [Or god. Whatever!]

Immediately my mind went to: _Oh gods of Egypt! How do I look? Are my clothes okay? How about my hair? Anubis looks so yummy today._ I looked in a mirror that was behind Anubis and saw that I looked presentable enough. For me at least.

Anubis greeted me with a hello and a small smile.

" . . .Hi. . ." I replied, smiling slightly back at him.

"I have to take you two to your parents. They wish to speak to you."

"So are we going right now or when?" Carter asked.

"Follow me, please," Anubis said opening a portal.

"Wait!" I said, remembering my iPod. I know, very stupid reason for interrupting Anubis while he was making a portal. But hey, I need my music even if it means taking it to the Land of the Dead.

". . . I forgot something. BRB."

"What do you possibly need to take to the Land of the Dead?" asked Carter, exasperated.

Naturally, I ignored him and was going to get my iPod until Anubis spoke, "I could help you go get whatever you need to bring."

"Sure." I replied; going up the stairs to my room, Anubis following me. I saw Carter make an overly-protective-brother-mode-face. That's just how he is. [Oh, yes you are, and everybody knows it!]

I opened the door to my room, looking for where I had left my iPod. I quickly snatched it and placed it inside my jean pocket.

"Okay, I found what I was looking f-"

Anubis was gazing at the painting that I had of him. How _embarrassing. Should have closed up the bloody picture, stupid._

He turned around as he heard me speak.

He looked at the iPod in my hand and said, "You need to bring _that? _I thought you were to bring something important for your parents."

"Excuse me, sir. but my _iPod _ is very important. It's not for my parents, but for my own hearing pleasure." I saucily retorted.

"Your sharp tongue once again does what it does best, naturally. I have nothing else to say."

Scowling, I muttered 'let's just go', but he had, apparently, not heard me.

"That is a fascinating picture." he said with a smirk, looking back at my poster of him, "Tell me, why do you own such?"

_Stupid me, stupid me. You should've closed it up before Carter called you!_

I could not find my voice yet a few moments later, I glared at Anubis, saying, "None of your business. Let's go."

"But this _is _me, isn't it?"

Quickly, I closed the closet so the painting could no longer be seen, and walked to the door. "Let's just go. _Now."_

Of course he followed me out the door. He knew better than to argue with me. But I heard him mutter something quietly. I didn't respond though; Mum and Dad wanted to see me!

When we arrived downstairs, Carter was eating his daily bar of Twix. Seriously, how does he never get sick of those things? [I know they taste good, but still!]

"Hey, Carter. I'm sorry for interrupting your Twix time, but we have to go."

He looked up, and finished eating that last bit of his chocolate bar.

"Alright," he said, and stood up from where he was sitting, "Are we going now or are you two going to keep me waiting again?"

Anubis looked slightly guilty, but continued to open the portal to the Land of the Dead.

"Carter, Sadie, step through." Anubis instructed us.

Carter went in first. I followed behind but was stopped by Anubis. He smiled sweetly, offering me his hand [No, not like _that_ Carter.] I looked down, hiding my reddened face. We stepped through the portal together.

**Review! Please...I would really like to know if you like my writing or not. I will try to update ASAP.  
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	2. I Accidentally Reveal Something To Mum

**Hello, everyone. Thank you all so much for the reviews! :D They were all encouraging…I'll let you read the chapter now!**

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Once we stepped out of the portal, we were in the Hall of Judgment. It looked the same as the last time. Anubis, still holding my hand (and Carter, staring at our hands for some reason) led us to our Dad.

Anubis led us to him, and he let go of my hand. [Pity.] Dad hadn't changed from the last time we saw him either; his skin was that blueberry colour and he was dressed in Osiris's pharaoh's attire. Dad, as he spotted Carter and me, exclaimed, "Children!"

He got up from his throne to embrace me and Carter. Anubis stood by (on Dad's right), and as a result of that, Dad even pulled Anubis into the hug [Talk about emotional eagerness.] I _think_ I saw Anubis colouring a bit, but due to the Hall's darkness, I could not tell for sure.

"Sir." Anubis addressed Dad, after some moments.

"Oh yes, thank you." Dad said, heading back to his throne, Anubis following to stand-by on Dad's right.

"It's been a long time since we have seen each other," Dad began. "So I have, obviously, asked Anubis to bring you here. Your mother too is here, who also wants to talk to you two."

Then and there, our mum emerged out of thin air, a smile on her face. "Hello, kids."

"Since we are now all here, we can - " Dad stopped as he heard my music. It was playing (very) loud and clear.

Anubis directed his gaze at me, the look on his face saying _What did I tell you?  
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". . .Sadie, dear, excuse me for saying this, but turn it off. Your music. It's distracting."

"No thanks, Dad. Perhaps later."

I saw Carter and Anubis rolling their eyes at my stubbornness.

Mum spoke up. "Julius, let her be. She is young and it's understandable why she isn't complying." I smirked at Carter and Anubis as my mum was defending me. "Sadie, dear, just lower the volume a little."

I did as she said, lowering the volume but not completely turning off the music. Dad shrugged, but moved on.

"OK, as I was saying, we are here so we can talk." Dad started again, and he looked at Mum.

"Anubis," my mother said as she saw Dad's look. "We will be discussing personal matters, so you may choose to leave or stay." Here I got worried. What the bloody heck did she mean by 'personal matters'?

Anubis replied with, "I have plenty of souls waiting to be judged, so I should leave." He bowed politely.

A dark portal appeared out of the air; and Anubis stepped through it, on his way to judge souls [No, Carter. Why would he be slacking on the job? That is so unlike him.].

I was relieved after that. Mum smiled at me; probably to let me know that she was not going to embarrass me in front of Anubis.

Dad then spoke loudly. "We're now united as a family. The reason I have called you together is so we may talk, update one another on things and such."

Carter who was quiet for a bit too long, finally said something. "About what?...Is it another Save-the-World-task? Come on, we've been doing pretty good in our lives lately, right, Sadie?"

Me, being me, didn't want to agree with Carter. But I nodded still.

"No, no," Dad chuckled. "Don't worry. We as parents, want to know what's going on in our kids' lives." He shrugged again due to my music. "Please, tell us what has been going on...anything."

Dad noticed our discomfort, though he smiled as if he knew that this was going to happen and made a plan about it. Dad asked Carter, "Son, I've heard the Lakers were having a huge game last night against the Knicks. Didn't find out who won though...Mind informing me?"

I was surprised at how Dad knew there was a game the night before. I began to wonder if he'd ever go up to the mortal world once in a while.

"Sadie, dear," My mum called softly to me, while touching my arm. "Why don't we go to another spot? Your brother and Julius seem to be busy discussing their little interests. I don't want to disturb them with _our_ chatting."

I nodded, and followed her to the other spot. It wasn't too far away from Carter and Dad, but far enough as to not disturb them.

"So, dearest," began my mother. "Why don't you tell me about your life? I wish to know how it's treating you."

This was uncomfortable as you may have guessed, speaking with my mum about…whatever.

"Well, what do you want to know mum? Please, specify." I responded. Her next words made me nervous, but I expected them, anyway.

"Oh, well. I remember the last time we saw each other. You told me you were still torn between the two young men, Walt and Anubis. Mind telling me how that's been going? And don't worry. I'm your mother and I'll make sure none of our conversation gets out to your father, or anyone for that matter." she said.

Trusting in her, I replied, "I am still confused about them, Mum."

"Go on."

"My feelings for Anubis still linger, even though I know it's impossible for me and him to be an item. I've been trying to get rid of those feelings by hanging out with Walt...but, as you would expect, I just_ can't._"

She nodded for me to continue.

"And, well," I said hesitantly. "It's just so baffling. I don't know which of them I like more, and it's sad, that I don't know at this point."

"I don't think so," Mum said. "I told you once before to stay true to your heart. Think about it deeply. Eventually you'll _know_ who you like more."

"I will?"

"Yes. You find out on your own. You'll know."

I smiled and talked with Mum some more. While we were chatting, I guess Dad overheard me say, "Anubis _really _is hot..." because right after I said that, I saw him move uncomfortably and he started looking my way. I mentally cursed at myself, _Bloody hell, Sadie, do you really want yet another person to know about your attraction to Anubis?_

I faced back to Mum, who was smiling widely, ignoring my father's stares.

"We must stop now," Dad declared all of a sudden, "I'm sorry to say this. We have no more time left, however. I should call back Anubis to take you home now."

Mum put her hand on my shoulder, and whispered, "Goodbye, Sadie. Take care."

Dad muttered something in Ancient Egyptian; a command, probably, to Anubis. I was right, because in a matter of seconds, the said death god stepped out of a portal (handsomely, I dare say).

I stood up and Dad stopped me before I headed to the portal. He studied me seriously, then said, "Bye, honey."

"Bye." I answered back lowly, blushing because he had recently found out about my cursed, _bloody_ fancy!

After Carter said his own goodbye's to our parents, he and I walked through the portal that Anubis opened go back home.

Arriving at the House, the mood felt more pleasant and free. Carter headed to the kitchen, probably going to grab a bite. Anubis then tapped me on the shoulder, and looked as if he were to ask me something. I had a feeling on what it was going to be about. . .

**I hope this was a good chapter! Please do review, it would mean so much for me.  
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	3. I Find Out What Dad Feels

**Hello! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews (I got more than expected). Now on with the chapter.**

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I spoke before Anubis could even say anything to me. "What do you want now, Death Boy?"

"Sadie, was there anything important I missed that Osiris had to mention?"

I remembered what had happened earlier. It was too embarrassing and Anubis didn't need to know. "No, not at all." I said.

"Oh." He looked disappointed. I felt somewhat sorry, but do you honestly think I was going to tell Anubis what had been said and done? No, it's as simple as that.

"Are you sure?" he asked. I nodded; but I couldn't help but place a smile on my face.

A mistake indeed.

When he saw my smile, I know he could sense that something was not quite right. For a moment, I thought Anubis was going to take out the Feather of Truth on me. But why would he? This wasn't a matter important enough as to have the Feather of Truth involved.

He stared at me in confusion and tilted his head.

After a while, he said, "Well, I should be going, Sadie Kane." His eyes downed. "I will see you soon, however. Osiris needs me now."

If I had known what he was feeling at the moment, I would have probably hugged him. But I wasn't too sure on how he was feeling. His eyes' expression told me he wasn't feeling very cheerful [then again, when is he ever in good spirits?], though I doubted a little.

"Goodbye, Sadie." Anubis said, after some moments. I only gave a little 'bye' in return.

He turned into a black, foggy mist and disappeared. I'll admit: the gods sure do know how to make interesting entrances and not to mention – exits, too.

I heard some laughter from the living room. For some time, I guessed it was just the trainees joking around or something, but it was midnight already (not a surprise, as mortal time passes quickly compared to time in the Duat, as you know). The trainees would be in their rooms by now.

But guess who it was? None other than my nerdy brother, Carter. He had been hiding behind the statue of Thoth, hearing my little conversation with Anubis. Carter appeared from behind the statue and I was so furious that I could have (a) Taken the safe way and just yell at him, or (b) battle him with magic. No matter how tempting choice (b) was, I took choice (a).

"What do you _think_ you were doing, Carter? Honestly, can't you give me my personal space when I _deserve_ it?!"

He flinched; but for some reason, he couldn't help but chuckle a little. "Sadie, I didn't do anything wrong. What's your problem?"

"My problem? Why the bloody _hell_ were you spying on me and him?"

"No reason."

Then, at that very moment Jaz and Walt came running down the stairs. "What's happened?" asked Jaz, looking extremely tired. "Don't tell me you guys are arguing again. . ." she sounded worried.

I didn't want either of the two to get worried about us at this time of the night so I said, "No; everything is fine." I could feel Carter frowning at me while I was looking at the floor.

"You sure?" asked Walt.

"Positive." Carter answered before I said anything.

I went to the kitchen before anyone could say anything else. A strong yet gentle hand touched my shoulder while I was going to get a glass to relax myself. I turned around and saw that it was Walt. He looked as handsome as ever, even if he had just woken up from sleep. But I felt rather odd in his presence, especially after what happened that day. Mum had said that I knew who I liked more among my really tough decision on Walt or Anubis. Whoever it was that I gave preference to, I did not know at this moment.

"Hi, Sadie." Walt greeted me, smiling.

"Hey. . ."

Frowning now, he asked: "Sadie, something's wrong. What is it?"

"Carter and I just got into a short, trifling argument, that's all." I replied quickly.

"Well, you sounded pretty angry."

"It was nothing important, really. Forget about it." I declared hastily, taking a sip of cold water and walking away. I didn't want to talk to him at the moment. I was very confused, see. I heard him following me but suddenly his footsteps stopped. I think he got the clue that I wanted to be left alone.

Don't get me wrong, I wasn't upset with him. I was just really confused at the moment. I went up to my bedroom and fell on my bed, still thinking deeply. _At least one of the most embarrassing days in your life is over and done with. _

Soon, I had fallen asleep. Of course, my _ba_ decided to take its usual trip to some place random.

Luckily enough, I wasn't in my hideous chicken form. Oh, well, good for me!

I was in the Hall of Judgment before I knew it. I saw Mum and Dad. The only person (or god) that I had expected to see there who _was not_ there at the time was Anubis.

"_Julius, don't worry. Our girl is just growing up. It eventually happens to everyone you know." _Mum spoke. They were talking about me.

"_It's just that I never expected her to say anything like that. Or even act in such a manner -" _Dad was cut off by mum.

"_Let her be. You have to understand that she's maturing, growing, which is perfectly normal."_

"_I don't want our daughter to grow up to be a normal everyday teenager -"_

"_But she's not. She's Sadie Kane. She will undoubtedly act like a teenager; but you don't have to worry. You and I have been teens, too. Everything is going to be alright, I assure you, honey."_

Dad smiled confidently as he said, _"It's just that – what she said – I felt as if she was growing up too quickly. . . I don't know if I'll see Sadie in the same way again."_

"_Julius, she is 15. It's certain that she will be acting this way." _Mum was frowning in frustration, normally.

"_Enough about this."_ Dad declared as Mum faded. After a while of Dad sitting there pondering, he finally called out, "_Anubis!"_

A graceful, dark jackal came running, and when it stopped, it had morphed into Anubis in his natural human form. He was in his Egyptian towel-thing, and shirtless. . .[OK, it's a kilt. Thank you earnestly for the confirmation, Carter.]

"_Yes, Lord Osiris? How may I assist you?" _

I suppose that Dad felt weird talking to Anubis, knowing that I, his pure, humble, innocent daughter, had a fancy for the god. It took a few seconds until Dad cleared his throat and began to speak. _"Anubis, I do hope you are doing your job and not being distracted by other things."_

"_Of course, Sir. As you know, I am always keeping all my focus on my job and nothing else." _replied Anubis.

"_Very good, and I hope it'll stay that way. You may continue working."_

Anubis bowed and left. I woke up from my _ba_ dream and thought about it. Now I knew what my parents – specifically my dad – thought about my fancy. . .I regretted ever talking to my mum, because she made me reveal things that I did not share with just anybody. . .Someone knocked on my room door. I went to go get it. It was Carter. What did he want from me? [Carter claims that he was going to ask if I was hungry, but when he saw my glare, he decided not to. Yes, Carter. I will believe that you knocked on my room door just to ask me _that._]

I glared at Carter but said in a sweet voice, "What may I help you with, brother dear?"

"Are you okay after what happened _today?_"

I thought for a bit. "I guess. But it's very uncomfortable thinking about it."

We stood there silently when Carter asked, "So, do you need anything?"

"No, now get out of my room, please." I answered, pushing Carter away and closing the door.

I went back to bed, this time determined to sleep _for real__. _And determined to forget all about today.

**So there's the third chapter! I hope it was fine. _Review!_**


	4. Time Passes & Anubis Tells Me Something

**Hi. I know I'm terrible for the ridiculously late update, but I'm very sorry. I've only recently have had all the burden taken of my shoulders, so I'm updating now. Also, I've been working to improve my writing style, because I didn't really like the previous chapters. At all. I found them weak, a bit OOC, and somewhat repetitive. So, you might find this chapter (and the next ones) a bit different, in writing style, of course. (There is also going to be a minor plot change starting here; just to let you know, because I don't want to confuse anyone.)**

**On another note, here is the 4th chapter! I'll update next time, with no doubt. So, that's all.**

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Weeks had passed after I last saw Anubis. More weeks passed by. And even more. I should have expected that, after all, why would he want to see me again? People die each and every day, and he needs to judge those souls in order to either allow them entrance to the Afterlife, or have Ammit devour their souls for eternity. It's a never-ending job - I get it. But he did say he was going to see me sometime soon. And I'll admit: I did want to meet with Anubis again, even if it meant that he'd be his own annoying self.

So one day, I was taking my regular nap, but I wouldn't even consider it a "nap" anymore. Since someone decided to appear to my ba right after. I was pulled away somewhere, and I was obviously, very annoyed. Who dared intrude my sleep? My ba goes on several trips on its own, yes, but this time it felt like someone was actually making it go somewhere. Very uncomfortable experience, it was.

Suddenly, I had stopped in some place. It was dark, with dim light coming in from certain areas. The place had a garden of old-looking Oak trees, dead roses and marigolds, falling leaves and branches, and brownish-grayish soil everywhere. There was a collection of broken tombstones with worn-out inscriptions, and rusty, creaky fences surrounded the place. Plenty of haze filled up the air, making it difficult to see - one had to squint. It reminded me of those settings you would read about in a Gothic novel - the ones I had learned about back in school in London, and I immediately checked if I was wearing any apparel from eighteenth century England. [I wasn't though, so don't ask.]

I was just walking along the place, wondering where it lead to. After minutes of wandering around, I finally saw someone.

Who? Oh, come on, you should know. If you guessed a certain Egyptian death deity, you are disappointedly correct.

So there he was, looking stupidly good looking as usual, in his leather jacket, black denim, and boots, but I didn't focus on his looks so much (the haze made it hard to see him, anyway). I had realized that the real reason I had fell for him before was because of his looks. His looks only. I promised myself I would like him...not for how hot he is, but for him - his (self conscious, sarcastic) personality.

He didn't notice me at all, because he was doing some funeraly stuff at the moment [And I don't care if 'funeraly' isn't a word, Carter; stop being such a nerd], but I spoke up so he would notice me.

"Ahem," I managed, a bit hesitantly, "I am here."

He stopped what he was doing, and looked at me, "...Why...it's interesting to see you again. Why did you come?" A smirk started to build up on his face, and I wanted to Ha-Di him just for that.

"What are you talking about? Wasn't it you who pulled me in here in the first place?" I thought he was the one who made my ba go there.

"...I did not. You came here of your own accord, didn't you?" He asked, starting to inspect me to see if I was lying. Bloody him and his canine-like instincts.

"No, I didn't."

"Well, that's quite interesting. You unexpectedly appear with no one or nothing to bring you here...and it wasn't me who had the intention to bring you here either." Anubis kept studying me, and I had a sudden interest in looking at the ground.

After a minute or so, he probably realized that I was saying the truth, because he stopped inspecting me and moved on, "Well, now that you're here, I should tell you something important that I've almost forgotten."

Hell, if I had enough courage for it, I would have hurt him right then and there. Why? He suddenly remembers he has to tell me something when I appear unexpectedly? Goodness, what if I didn't appear just like that? It would have taken him ages to remember whatever he had to tell me.

"What is it then, this important thing you have to tell me, god-of-I-Remember-Things-When-Someone-Appears?"

That probably wasn't the smartest thing to say, especially to a god, but then again Anubis knows me and my nicknames for him. So he wouldn't really be angered; more like very annoyed.

"Sadie Kane, will you ever change?" he sighed, "Ever?"

I can't believe I can actually stand him. But he can cope with me, so I shouldn't complain.

"Whatever. Just tell me what you were going to say before I leave."

He leaned against a tree and crossed his arms, then spoke, "I've been informed by Osiris that my mother, Nephthys, wishes to see you, along with... the cat goddess, Bast."

It took me quite a while to respond. Why did Nephthys and Bast want to see me? I wondered: What did I do this time? Especially with goddesses like them; I had never met Nephthys or done anything to her, and Bast was my friend, even if she was in cat-form when I lived with her throughout the years in England.

"What?" I said in a raspy voice, "Why do they want to see me?"

"I don't know. I've asked Lord Osiris, but he doesn't give me any further information. It's very important, from what I've gathered, but I don't know completely."

"Well, what do you know?"

"Only that both goddesses want to see you soon, at peace. I'm not sure if I'm involved in this, though. I might be, since Osiris has told me something about it. And he wouldn't have told me if I wasn't included."

I nodded for him to continue.

"Osiris wants you to meet with the goddesses, but only if you're accompanied by your brother, Carter. He doesn't want you to travel alone... And I don't blame him."

Do you see how bloody annoying he is? Just when the conversation gets serious, he has to add his annoyance and humor, as if he has any humor.

I rolled my eyes at him, "And where exactly am I supposed to meet them both in?"

"Not you. With your brother."

"Tell me where, before I - "

"Nephthys and Bast are not going to see to see you at the same place, at the same time. You're going to have to see the cat goddess first, wherever you can find her." He said the word cat with disgust, and I knew it was because Bast and Anubis greatly disliked each other. (Dog and Cat relationship?) "Then you will have to go see my mother, and it's obvious where you can find her. Since she is the goddess of rivers, you can find her in any river." He looked around, then started again, "So in short, you and your brother will see them both, at separate times. Starting with Bast, then with Nephthys."

I understood. "So... that's it?"

"Unless you want to teach me about those courtship rituals you mentioned when we first met."

Ugh, not this again...He always manages to find a way...

But I decided to return his annoyance, "Judging from your lack of knowledge on courtship rituals, it's hopeless for you to even try to learn about them."

He smiled, which you know is something he doesn't do often.

"I must confess, Sadie, you are quite nice company."

I blushed, but Anubis couldn't see it, thanks to the haze in the air. "Can I go back now?"

"Sure..." He waved his hand and I went back to my real sleeping body.

I woke up thinking, Finally, I couldn't stand him at all.

Then I remembered the important thing:_ Nephthys and Bast want to see me. I have to tell Carter. _


	5. Sadie Discusses Her New Adventure WithMe

**Thanks to all those who reviewed! I'm sorry it took me long to update. I'll explain at the end of this chapter. SIDENOTE: This is going to be in Carter's point of view. Just because I feel like it. There might be a few of Carter's POV's every few chapters.**.

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[Wait - What? This is your recording after all! No…Come back!]

….Sorry…. My sister thought it was all right to ditch me with this cassette. She wants me to tell the next part for her, she said.

Right now, she's going to – ah - never mind. You wouldn't want to know.

Anyway, Zia and I were outside, on the terrace of Brooklyn House enjoying a sunset and having small conversation. It was a perfectly nice evening – nothing could have possibly ruined it, right?

Well, when you have a sibling that has the capacity to either annoy, anger, or love you whenever they feel like it, there's that chance.

I heard something faint – probably running footsteps - coming outside to the terrace, where Zia and I were at the moment.

"Carter, brother dear!" I heard British-accented Sadie call out. "Must tell you something! Now. Privately. Alone."

"Not right now." I replied, not wanting to leave Zia as we were both conversing currently.

"Look, this is important."

I nearly laughed out loud, but I didn't, for my own safety. Whenever Sadie says 'it's important', you should know that she's totally going mad. Well…at least most of the time. You can never tell when she's being serious sometimes.

"Tell me later." I said, not really caring whether what she had to tell me was significant or not.

And Zia, who had been calmly minding her own business and watching the dark pink sky, decided to keep the conversation going rather than ending, out of curiosity, I suppose. "What's this about?"

"Nothing important, really." responded Sadie quickly.

I told you, you may never know if my sister's serious or not.

Zia just stared at my sister, probably wondering if she was okay. I didn't blame her.

"Leave now," I said to Sadie. "You're only here for stalking."

She didn't respond. Instead, she gave me one of her infamous glares, and I got the point: She _was_ going to say something vital. [Leave it to Sadie when it comes to emotions and drama.]

Great.

I got up from my comfortable spot in reluctance, and immediately, Sadie grasped me firmly and pulled me into a corner.

"Carter," She started. "There's been - ah, how do I put this…"

"What is it?" I asked, a bit annoyed at the fact that she was taking away my time with Zia. "Please tell me it's not another Anubis-problem. If so, I'm leaving."

She flushed, indicating that it might have been about him. "Um, well, maybe…..but not in the way you think it is!"

I quickly pulled from her grasp and started to make a run.

Mistake.

She pulled me back and punched me rather hard.

"Ouch," I said, rubbing the place where I was hurt. "Hurry up if this really is important."

She stared at the floor. Definitely not expected from a person like her…What could have happened this time?

"Carter…..There's been something going on."

"Apparently."

"Well, Anubis sort of, um, appeared to my ba dream last night to tell me something, and it involves you and me…"

"Uh, okay…why…?" I asked, confused.

This time she looked up from the floor. "Anubis told me that Bast and Nephthys wanted to see me, for some reason not yet known. I'd asked if he knew why they wanted to see me…but he claimed he didn't know...It seems pretty important nevertheless, and I wouldn't want to miss out on whatever they have to tell me."

"Hold on a sec," I said. "You're saying you have two different goddesses wanting to see you for an unknown but possibly dangerous reason, yet you think it's important and don't care whether this might be risky or not."

"You can say that."

I snickered. "And how exactly am I included in this?"

"Anubis insists that I can't go see the goddesses alone….As if the bloody god actually cares for my well-being….ugh…. But anyway, I have to be accompanied by someone, and guess who that someone is, yes?"

"…..Me?"

"Yup!"

Darn it, I thought. Don't get me wrong, I love my sister, and I was willing to go with her, but if you've heard our previous recordings, you know how she can be and all.

"We go see the goddesses, but where?"

Sadie smiled. "Gods all have their realms in the Duat. Duh!"

"You're not really considering the Duat, right? You know how dange-"

"Oh, please, Carter. We saved the world from a giant serpent once. Visiting goddesses surely doesn't compare to that in terms of danger."

"Still," I argued stiffly. "Mortals can't go through the Duat without dying. Since we're magicians, though, we do have some advantage but we can't help feeling somewhat nauseous when we go there…and you know that. I can't believe you've actually forgotten this!"

"No need for another lesson, brother. I know the Duat isn't easy-go-lucky. You know of our past experiences there. But is there any other possible way we can visit the godde-"

"We can summon them," I suggested. "Nephthys, for example. She's a river goddess. We can go to the nearest river, and safely summon her using a spell."

"Yes," Sadie said. "But you know the gods. They aren't always in the mood to be summoned. I think we can convene Bast, though, as we know her well and she's our friend. Nephthys, however, - I haven't even met her before! I don't know what she's like, so it'd be best we not summon her. The Duat is a better option."

"Fine," I agreed grudgingly (Sadie had a point; I just didn't want to boost up her ego). "So are we going to see Bast or Nephthys first?"

"Bast," She answered. "Anubis said Nephthys wanted to see me after Bast. Dunno why, probably she has some more important things to discuss with me."

"Yeah…about that, do you have any idea why Bast and Nephthys want to see you?" I asked. "You didn't secretly anger them behind my back, did you?"

Sadie rolled her eyes. "Come on, have some faith in me for a change. I told you before: I really don't know. Not even Anubis, who told me about all of this, knows. As far as I'm aware, I didn't even do anything to them, so I don't know why they would want to have contact with me. Bast, most likely wouldn't mean anything bad, she's our friend, hello! But Nephthys? I don't know what she would want from me."

I nodded to show I understood. Then suddenly something crossed my mind.

"…Sadie?"

"Yes?"

"I can't believe this hadn't occurred to me – that dream where Anubis told you all this – was it a ba dream or a normal dream?"

She looked at me in disbelief. "Why…of course it was a ba dream! I know the difference between the two!"

"Okay, just making sure," I laughed. "Who knows? It could have been just a normal dream of you seeing Anubis…Wouldn't be too surprised there…"

"Be quiet!"

"Anyhow," I continued. "When do you plan on starting?"

"Starting on what?"

"Seeing Bast and Nephthys." I replied obviously.

"Oh, um…I actually don't know."

"…How could you not know?"

"I wasn't told," Sadie said. "Guess I should see Anubis again to ask him?"

"Maybe… do it quick, though. No small talk with him. I want to get over with this as soon as possible."

"So this means I'll have to go to sleep again?" Sadie asked.

"What?"

"I can't go see Anubis without dreaming, dummy. Well, unless he comes to see me but I doubt that will happen right now…Therefore, I have to go to sleep."

"Right," I said. "You go take a nap now."

"Yes, thank you." Sadie starting walking to her bedroom.

"Sweet dreams with Anubis!" I shouted to annoy her.

"Good gods, shut up!"

I only chuckled watching her go upstairs to her room. While Sadie would be sleeping and dreaming, I would go out to terrace again with Zia and wait until she woke up.

**If anyone was confused, please tell me! This chapter was dedicated to explain how their adventure is going to be like. I guess there were small hints of one-sided Sanubis here, seeing as Anubis isn't in this chapter. I know Bast and Nephthys wanting to see Sadie was just kinda thrown out there, but later in the story you'll see why (And yes, this eventually has to do with Anubis and Sadie's relationship). Also, I've tweaked with the summary some to make the plot of this story clearer.**

**My explanation for not updating, now:**

**I going to update just after I read The Serpent's Shadow, the day it came out. However, after I was completely done with the book, my perspective for all the characters changed. How? -spoiler- If you've read the book, you know that Walt and Anubis are technically the same person now, since they've merged together. Which, come to think of it, is kind of creepy. Anyhow, since both of them are the same guy now, and they're both dating Sadie…that contradicts this story, in which Sadie is only going to be interacting with Anubis, not both of them.**

**And that was what changed me entirely of my perspective; I even considered deleting this story, and rewriting it in which Anubis and Walt are the same person, and posting it up. The other thing I considered was to just keep writing this story the way it is. It took me quite a while to decide – which explains this late update – and I came to resolve that I'd just write this story as is. Mostly because I wouldn't have to come up with a new idea(s). Plus, I have this story already planned out (not everything though), and I'm surely going to enjoy writing it the way I prefer. Just because Rick Riordan made the series end in a different way doesn't mean that'll keep me from writing.**

**And I'd to clear this up as well: In this story, Walt and Anubis never became the same person (unlike the books). This is fanfiction, after all.**

**Anyway, sorry for the very late update and long rant… Reviews are greatly appreciated, by the way.**


	6. My Pre-Adventure

**Another **_**extremely**_** late update! A little over two years. Are you people still into Sanubis? How about my faithful old reviewers? Are you still alive & well? I'm ashamed of myself. I won't give any excuses because I'm assuming you're tired of them. **

**But I should mention one thing. If you've been reading this story and expecting an update(s), then I should suggest you re-read the last chapter, just to refresh your mind a little on the story.**

**On with the story!**

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[Hand me the mic now, my turn!]

I'm back. I bet my brother was a bad narrator, as always. But I'm here now, so let's just continue.

Where did Carter last leave off?

Oh, yes. There was that _long_ explanation I gave to Carter about my new adventure and his having to go with me; then me having to head to sleep again to contact Death Boy about something.

_Simple enough_, isn't it?

Heading upstairs to my room (from that extremely frustrating conversation with my brother), I thought: _A bloody fool is what you are, Carter. _I mean, honestly. What sort of brother teases his sister about her fancy (A.K.A., "crush" for you language-butchering Americans)?

Actually, never mind. Dumb question.

As I entered my room and closed the door behind me, I instantly walked to and comfortably fell on my bed. I grabbed my iPod from the near drawer, and started searching for a tune that would lull me to sleep quickly...

I couldn't find such a song till I came across Beethoven's _Silencio _(odd tune for me, you might think; but it is good actually, despite classical music being too lengthy most times) and so I put on my earphones, laid down, and pressed _Play_ on my iPod.

I'm not sure when I exactly fell asleep, but it was surely during some part of the ten-minute song.

"Ugh!" I complained, immediately getting up once I felt something big hit my head, "What was that?"

"A large tree branch." – came the reply from, I saw, none other than the funeral god himself, Anubis. "What are you here for?" he asked, his face changing into a wary expression.

"Well," I began, "Carter and I –"

"I thought I made everything perfectly clear." He declared, cutting me off.

"Whoa." – his sudden, um, _aggressiveness_, worried me; "I don't know what's up with you, but Carter and I didn't even go yet. We had to ask you something first: when, exactly, does Bast and your mum want to see us? _When _do we head off?"

His countenance softened, and he…sighed. "Oh. Excuse me." – suspicious, I thought, at his immediate relief. "Well, I suppose I'm sorry for not making things clear. You should be going now, as soon as you can. My mother and Bast want to see you, Sadie, soon. You should be heading off right after this."

OK, so I got the information I needed. Now, Carter told me to get it over with fast, but come on, my chances of seeing Anubis again were scarce. Luckily, I had managed to see him two times in one day, in respective _ba _dreams, one before and the one right now. It was only proper to seize the opportunity, Sadie-Kane style.

He looked at me as if this were the exact moment I should have been saying my 'goodbye's' to him.

Staying a little longer couldn't hurt anybody, right?

"All right, thanks for clearing that up, but..." I said, artificially hesitant.

"Yes?"

"I believe that you need an _edification_ of sorts..."

He looked confused, which was exactly the reaction I was expecting and wanting to get out of him. However, he replied with, "What can you possibly teach _me, _Sadie Kane?"

"Did you forget our previous conversations, and what we discussed in them?" I smiled, I couldn't help it. "The courtship rituals on which you lack knowledge?"

Yeah, I didn't forget that, and I never will. Teaching Anubis about this particular subject is something that I am fully dedicated to accomplishing.

"I appreciate your commitment on that, Sadie, but now is not the time I'm sure. You have things to do, and so do I."

"But -"

"I'm sorry that it has to be this way, with most of our encounters not lasting as long as they should. I'd like to see you for longer, though I can't. But if we both ever get the chance to, then expect a meeting between us to last for a good amount of time. Maybe then, I may receive this _edification _that you are pressing on me so much every time we meet..."

And with that, I woke up.

I don't even want to talk about what he said...because you're probably sick of me saying it over and over again...he's infuriating, yet perfect..but mostly obnoxious in his own right, and [Fine, I'm going on about him again. I'll stop. Thanks. Whatever.]

At that moment, Carter coincidentally walked in (to check on me, I guess), and said, "Wow. You're awake. Did you even -"

"Of course I am awake, and yes, I did go to sleep. I'm not time-waster. Anubis says we need to head off A.S.A.P. Did I answer all your questions?"

"Yeah, but let's start tomorrow. I'm not feeling it today. Plus, we need to inform the trainees that we're leaving, let them know fully what's happening and why we're going. And we need to assign assign the people who'll be in charge and -"

"Gods of Egypt, I get it...yes, yes, now stop. We will get all that done," I got up, and continued, "I'm hungry. Let me go grab something and then we'll talk further."

* * *

><p>Later that day, Carter and I addressed the inmates about our going off:<p>

"Alright, guys, we're here to briefly inform you all that Sadie and I will be going to..._clear things up_ in a few places." I hated how he was so vague about, but I guess I couldn't blame him, because we ourselves didn't know the complete details.

"Before any of you ask, yes, this involves some of the gods," I added, "but it's not anything major, like end-of-the-world major, and we'll be gone for about a week maximum."

"Anything involving the gods must be major, at least death experience major," said Cleo._  
><em>

She had a point, but we didn't want to make anyone worried.

"Bring back penguins!" exclaimed Felix.

"Who's gonna be in charge of us, and even more so, the little kids?" asked someone else.

Now that was something we could answer easily.

Obviously, the two most trusted trainees, who have been here longer than anyone else, and also very responsible people themselves [How could you say that? They are _not _more responsible than me...well...], Jaz and Walt Stone.

"Any more questions?"

Walt called my attention.

"Are you sure this isn't serious? You guys shouldn't be lying."

I hesitated. I didn't really know.

"It's some business with two goddesses. Nothing more. Nothing less."

"Is it life-threatening?"

"No, it's not anything near life-threatening."

"It's getting late, guys," Carter said, still not realizing how dweebish he came off as every single time he said that [Yes, do you not yet know that _no one _really obeys the bed-time rule you've assigned?], "so anything else?"

After that, no one really asked anything else.

"OK then, dismissed I guess."

As the trainees left the room, Carter and I looked at each other for some moments.

"I'm trying to remember how you got me into this." He stated.

"Oh, it's not that bad. We get to see Bast again! And we get to have yet another goddess in our aquaintance, Nephthys! This could all turn out to go very well for all you know."

"For all _I _know, this could all turn out horrible."

"I much prefer my idea." I grabbed a cookie, and offered it to him. He accepted a little reluctantly I noticed, and then I grabbed one for myself.

Tomorrow was going to be the start of our latest adventure.

**Again I apologize for this long, over-delayed update. Hope no one's planning my death because of it (then if I died I would be unable to update). Review!**


	7. We Summon Bast with Enchanted Friskies

**A/N: This chapter is an accomplishment for me! It is not the fastest update ever, but it's much quicker than I expected to post it up. By the way, no Anubis here (and I don't think I will be making him appear for a few more chapters), but I have and will continue to mention him as he is still a major part of this story! (This _is_ a Sanubis fic)**

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The next day had me and Carter gathering up all the things we prepared the day before, such as our staffs, wands, and our magician's boxes.

We also had to get into our linen clothing in order for us to perform magic well. It didn't tick me off as it did several times before, because I understood it now, and besides, I always had my signature, punk look as I strapped on my combat boots and dyed my streak green (Yes, green. Being adventurous here!)

It was going to be a ride.

Before we went off, however, we said our goodbye's to everyone. Carter, of course, had his private moments with Zia [You think I didn't spot you two all by yourselves? Give me a break!]

"...Hey, Sadie, we're really going to miss you, even though you're not going be gone long as you're saying." It was...Walt. And guess who was holding his hand? None other than Jaz! To be honest, I didn't care as much as I did when I was first attracted to him. It died off, I guess I should say. Besides, I think it was starting to show that Walt and Jaz were developing something...I must admit, that made me jealous, but not in the way you're expecting. It was that while their romance was growing, I rarely even got to develop anything with Anubis! But that's off the point...[Thanks for telling me.]

In return, I said, "I'm going to miss you guys, too, but again, I promise we're not going to be off long. As we've told you yesterday, the goddesses we're going to see haven't really gave us hints of anything alarming."

"We hope not." Jaz chimed in. "Trust us, we all hope everything goes well, whatever it may be."

I hugged them both after that.

I also hugged the anklebiters, and gave my warmest goodbyes to everyone else, as did Carter.

After that, we left out the doors of Brooklyn House, and headed to the roof to make a portal.

* * *

><p>"OK," Carter started. "I remember you saying that we're going to see Nephthys last...so, how do we summon Bast?"<p>

"More like, where can we find cats?" I said. "I mean, it's so obvious!"

Carter looked at me, a little embarrassed perhaps because I thought of it before him. "Well, this is New York City, and a bunch of stray cats are to be found everywhere. Or, if you want to settle for a more civilized choice, we can go to a pet store, which I much prefer."

"I prefer stray cats," I said, "Much _less_ civilized!"

Carter sighed. He had to give in, and plus, it wasn't all that important anyway; stray cats were still cats! And now that I think about it, a pet store could have been a bad choice because there are also dogs there, which would have driven Bast off before she could even address us! [Give it up to my genius thinking, Carter!]

"So?" I asked, already knowing he would accept my suggestion.

"So...I guess we're going to see some strays..."

"All right!" I exclaimed, satisfied. "Since we can't really summon a portal to a random alley or somewhere where there are stray cats, let's do a portal to school. From there, we'll walk to find some place where see a bunch of cats. Clear?"

It took him a while to take it in, but he eventually got it. Then he smiled.

"What?" I said.

"To make things easier, I just happen to have some cans of Friskies in my bag. Bast will love it."

"Brilliant idea!" I smiled as well. He was my brother and he was irritating at times, but he truly was a smart guy [Don't get all cocky there.].

And so I convened the portal to Brooklyn Academy for the Gifted. Carter and I stepped through it, and not long after, we were right in front of BAG.

School wasn't in session since it was the summertime, which for once made me not look at the building with dread (although it is a good school).

Carter and I then began walking the streets of Brooklyn Heights, looking specifically for a group of strays.

After much searching (and surprisingly no magical encounters, which find us everywhere we go), we went right up into an alley behind a rather filthy McDonalds where, of course, we found a clowder of cats, who were munching and nibbling at a half-eaten Big Mac. They were so into it that they barely noticed us.

"Well, you know what you have to do," I told Carter.

He ruffled through his bag and pulled out some cans of Friskies. I helped him with a few and started opening them, but then Carter stopped me.

"What are you doing? Aren't we-"

"We can't just open a Friskies can, put it near those cats, and then expect Bast to come up, can we?" he tested me. "We've got to put a spell on it."

I hated that he was right. "Ugh, fine. I'll do it."

On one of the cans I had already opened, I used my staff to put a spell on it that solidified it as a magical object.

Carter took it from me afterwards.

"Hey!"

"With your presence and that vomit streak in your hair, those poor cats will probably run away."

I scowled, but he still approached the cats carefully, which made them hiss and back up. Looked like they weren't inclined to like him much either.

Still, Carter got close enough to place the opened can near them, and he went back to where I was.

Waiting, we watched the cats as they all forgot about the Big Mac and ran up to the Friskies can. Somewhere in the Duat, wherever she was, Bast could sense that we were trying to summon her.

Finally, after all of the cats were fighting to be the sole owner of the wet food from the can, one cat started glowing and suddenly, all of the others were blown away back to the hamburger.

That one cat was greatly enjoying the food until I called for her attention, "Bast!"

She looked up at my call, and her eyes reminded me so much of Muffin I had to resist tears. Nostalgia...it sure bit me in the rear.

I didn't have time to reminisce since she walked over to us, and morphed into her human form. The cat she had shortly used as her host sprinted back to the food can along with the other kitties.

"Kittens!" Bast exclaimed as she got hold of Carter and me, hugging us tightly, showing that her love for us was still strong. Honestly, I thought she was about to pick us up from the scruffs of our necks or something.

"How are you two? What have you been up to? Where? Why? When? Goodness, I have so many questions!"

"We can see." Carter managed in between squeezes.

Bast let us go at last, and asked, "No, but really, how are you two adult cats doing? Yes! I didn't call you kittens!"

"We're good, things have ran well at the House ever since the war ended." Carter answered. "But you called Sadie for some reason, didn't you? Anubis said you had to see her. What for?"

Bast frowned, and she arched her body. I could tell that whatever it was, it was probably - most likely - not good. I did not like this.

"Look, Carter. I really appreciate that you accompanied your sister and will continue do so, but this is supposed to be between me and her, and later on, Nephthys...I don't think Sadie would want you very much involved anyway, and if she chooses to share it with you afterwards, then that's her choice, my little grown-up kitty."

Carter looked conflicted, but I assume that he didn't feel like it was much of his business anyway, which it was not. Believe it or not, I felt quite bad that, essentially, all he was doing was traveling with me to make sure I had extra help and protection, and then once I was at my destination, he would just wait there, and, well, wait. [Yes, I am admitting it...]

At last, Carter resigned. "Fine. So I guess I'll leave you two at it."

"Thank you." was Bast's reply, her tone a little sympathetic for Carter.

"It's okay, really. And by the way, 'little grown-up kitty' doesn't make sense. A creature can't simultaneously be little and grown-"

"OK!" I interrupted, sensing Carter's daily nerdy rant. "That's enough. Why don't we get on with this, Bast?"

Bast agreed. She waved her hand, and suddenly she and I were in a very snug, yet huge golden room. I felt a warm coziness under my rear bottom, and I realized that I was sitting on black-dotted, yellow sofa with Bast. I could go into more particulars, such as the awfully cute young, adult, and old cats playing around and lazing about the area, with yarn and string rolled out all over carelessly. It was a kitty hang-out, of sorts. Seemed like a cool place to have a relaxed, yet thoughtful conversation. But the conversation that was about to come would not be so peaceful.

I had picked up an orange kitten who was purring and rubbing herself on my legs, when Bast sighed. "If only..." she breathed.

"If only what?" I pressed her on, rubbing the kitten's ears. I was so curious about what this all was about. Why had she and Nephthys wanted for me to visit them?

"If only I didn't run away when the Dog scared me off as I was helping you and Carter with deafeating Set...maybe then you wouldn't have talked to him at all, and then I wouldn't have forced myself to have this conversation with you..."

"What in the world are you talking about?"

She looked up at me, and I saw her pupils in slits. "I don't approve of you and the Dog."

**Cliffhanger! It seems like one to me! So, if you can, review. :)**


	8. Bast Does Not Approve (And I Don't Care)

**A/N: I am back with the latest chapter of this story! This is such a quick update too, so I'm proud of myself. I finished writing and editing this _today,_ which is even better. I also haven't mentioned this in a while, but I am really grateful for each and every review I receive. I feed off of them - they are my FUEL. I would like to shoutout Sanubis Lover for writing a very passion-driven review! It's great to see there are still some diehard Sanubis shippers out there, and even more so when you review my story, so I know that I have people waiting and yearning for the next chapter. Thank you!**

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"What?" I said, totally confused. I didn't know who "the Dog" was at first, but then I recalled that Bast had used that nickname for another god that she happened not to like.

When the realization came upon me, I dryly said: "You're talking about Anubis."

Bast hissed. "Oh, if I could get my claws on that canine, I would banish him to the ends of the Duat like I did to Apo-"

"Calm down!" I interjected before she said the name. "Look, Bast, I would really appreciate to know what this is all about."

"But you heard me, didn't you? I don't approve of you and _him_."

It came to me then.

She did not want me and Anubis to be together.

"But..." I started, a little too hesitant for my own liking. "He and I aren't even an item."

"Precisely! And it should stay that way, in my opinion." I wasn't too shocked that she felt like this; I should have expected something like this to happen sooner or later, right? "Sadie, dear, if he ever even _tries,_ just summon me, alright?"

"Wait," I stopped her as I noticed something strange. "How do you even know about me and him? Not that we're dating," Bast frowned at the suggestion, "but, oh, gods of Egypt, how did you find out that I _like_ him?"

Bast's slits became wide. "You _what_?"

Oops. Suppose that she _didn't _know that. Even the little orange fluff-ball on my lap hissed when I said that.

"Nothing," I said, "Ignore-"

"No," Bast rebuffed. "No, Sadie. No, no, no. Don't fall for him, but I think you already did."

_I did a long while ago, kitty-cat._

"Sadie, I'm not saying this just because he's a dog, but because he's a _god_. It's not safe. _He's_ not safe. I'm sure there are proper, respectable young men in the mortal world for you, but he's not the one, kitty."

"So? What's your point?"

"My point is," she sighed. "You can't be with him. Not now, not ever. Never."

I didn't say anything for a while. How could she think like this? How was this possible? How could Bast, one of my best friends, not approve of a relationship with a guy I really liked?

OK, I know what it sounds like. Some pathetic forbidden love story that no one frankly cares about. But it was _my_ (and Anubis') pathetic forbidden love story, if you want to call it that. Therefore, I don't care if you're like: _Boo hoo! You didn't get to be with him! He's a god anyway, you shouldn't be thinking of him in that way, you immature, reckless, foolish girl! _

Bast didn't say anything for a while too, but she decided the silence was enough when she lifted my chin up, and said, "It's all right, kitten. I know you need time to process it in. But I'm afraid Nephthys won't be so generous."

That caught my attention. I had completely forgotten about the river goddess. "What do you mean, she won't be generous?"

Bast tugged some of my hair behind my ear. "Even though she hasn't seen her terrible son for millennia, she still cares about him, and...I don't think she wants a mortal with him either."

This was all too crushing, too sudden. Naturally, however, I protested [Yes, protest and rebellion come easily to me, Carter. Want a cookie?], "No, Bast. I can't comply - I will not comply with this." I said, as another kitten, this one black, jumped on my lap.

"I'm really sorry to say it Sadie, but it had to be said. Especially me before anyone else. The Dog does not deserve you. He can go find some ugly, disgusting jackal goddess for himself, but I won't let him with you - not-"

"You're not my protector anymore, Bast. You have no right to tell me whom I should be with or not." I cut her off as I petted the kittens on my lap.

"He's dangerous, Sadie! Though he's pretty young for five-thousand years old, he's got many of his jackal tricks and I don't want him taking advantage of-"

I managed a small laugh. Anubis? Taking advantage of me? Sure, he's a god, but really? "Anubis would never do that. Why are you making him out to be more evil than Set?"

"I'm not, it's only the truth, and I wouldn't be surprised if he did actually inherit his father's evil ways. I know protecting you stopped being my job a year ago, but that doesn't mean I still can't protect you from a god who will harm you!"

As if Anubis would really ever do harm to me. In what sort of bloody, twisted world would that happen?

A pause ensued between us. The only audible sounds were the ones the cats were making in the room. Finding some will to speak again, I said, "Bast...I will continue to see Anubis, whether you like it or not. And you didn't answer my question from before," I just happened to notice that. "How did find out about us in the first place?"

Bast's pupils became slits again. "Most of the gods know about it."

"How?" I was embarrassed at the new information.

"The Dog's strange behavior at the godly meetings was enough to tell something was up...then Isis and Horus found out that..." she stopped and gulped. "He kissed you." She made a face of disgust and horror as she said that part, and I wondered if she was coming up with ways to destroy Anubis.

"Isis and Horus know?"

"Yes, but they only warned him about you, that you were a powerful magician who can destroy him if he lets you get too close." Her voice picked up a little at the next part. "And you definitely should destroy him, send him to the ends of the Duat where he will be lost for a good while."

"I know you hate him a lot, Bast," I said with an irritated sigh, "but that doesn't mean I should reflect on your opinion of him."

"Kitten, I told you, it's not just that. A god and a magician should never date, marry, or anything of the kind. It could quite possibly be one of the most dangerous things in both the godly and mortal worlds."

"What do you mean?"

Bast sat back on the sofa, and looked like she were about to tell some awful, depressing story that was supposed to bring me to sense. "...Apep...he once was hosted by a very handsome Egyptian pharoah and was in control of the body when he married a talented, beautiful magician. The magician didn't know that the Pharoah was being controlled by the serpent, and, as a result, unspeakable things happened to her and their spawn...I don't want similar things happening to you, Sadie. What's worse is that I was supposed to be protecting that woman at the time, and I failed."

I felt tremendously sorry for the woman. But if Bast was using this story to convince me out of seeing Anubis, she wasn't close to being successful. "I can see where you're getting at Bast, but that was Apep, the god of chaos. Anubis is no where near that-"

"I didn't finish." Bast interrupted. "Their children had to killed only because they were Apep's. And of course if the children turned out to be chaotic, that would throw off Ma'at."

"I can repeat myself again. Anubis is not chaotic, so stop trying to antagonize him!"

"And then there was Serqet." Whoa, why was she ignoring me? Why was Bast acting like this? "She was hosted by an Egyptian pharoah as well. She loved the power of it, and made a clueless magician fall in love with her. Their children had to killed as well because of the chaos they would bring. As you would expect, Serqet killed the magician once was she was done using him and her host, like the setpent did."

"Anubis is not like that."

"He's capable of _a ton _more than you think, kitten." Bast said in a voice that sought to persuade, but also in a way that indicated she wanted to end the conversation. "Now, I'm sorry, I have to leave, I actually have to take care of some business with the Dog himself."

"Are you going to hurt him?" I asked instantly, uneasy.

"Remind Carter that I love him! And of course, you too, Sadie." With that, she waved her hand and I was back in the alley.

I no longer felt warmth under my bottom, and the kittens who were frolicking on my lap disappeared; I fell on the dirty ground. Looking up, I recognized the putrid smell and sight of the alley, and grunted. I also saw Carter had all the stray cats around him as he was giving away the Friskies he had. He didn't notice I was back yet.

"Ahem." I said loudly.

He jumped. "You're back!"

"Obviously."

He looked at the cats, then at me. "I was pretty busy while you were gone..."

"I can see. I would have done the same thing."

"Yeah." He petted the cats while he asked, "So are you done? Ready to go to our next destination?"

"Sort of," I was still overwhelmed by my conversation with Bast. "but you still seem busy."

"Uh..."

"Don't worry, take all the time you need. I need some thinking time anyway." I declared as I went to a corner and sat down.

"...Are you OK?" He asked carefully. "What did Bast say?"

"I'm not OK," I said truthfully. "But I don't want to talk about it right now."

He didn't reply, and I appreciated that he respected my not wanting to talk. [Yes, brother dear, I did.]

I really needed some time for myself and my thoughts only.

Ugh.

**There you have it! Sadie Kane is very troubled right now though! Will Sanubis prevail? Will it fail? What will Nephthys have to say to Sadie? Will Nephthys even appear in the next chapter? Or will Sadie discover that Anubis doesn't really like her and went off to marry Walt? (Any Waltnubis shippers out there? Lol.) Anyhow, review! **


	9. We Get Attacked and Sadie Saves Me

**A/N: Chapter nine is here. It's in Carter's POV. You know, because Sadie needs a little break.**

**Furthermore, this is what one would call a "filler" chapter, but don't disregard it as a boring, uneventful chapter. Filler chapters are the most necessary in a story, so it can lead to some more juiciness in the next part. No Sanubis here either, but definitely mentions of Anubis. I apologize for the zero Sanubis in here, but if you really like and are persistent with this story, I have no doubt that there will be a great deal of Sanubis.**

**Thank you for all the reviews - love them! For the record, I do not ship Salt. Some of you thought I was hinting at it in my last A/N, but I was actually hinting at Waltnubis/Wanubis. No worries though, there's no Salt or Wanubis in this fic. But I _should_ write a Wanubis fanfiction...**

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Hi. Carter Kane here. Although Sadie's mostly narrating this thing and you're probably used to her way of things, I hope my interference doesn't cause any inconvenience [Sadie says I probably am, and that she _would_ continue to narrate, but she wants to take a break with some Ribena drink].

Where was Sadie last at...oh, yes. I thought Bast had said something very troubling to Sadie that should have involved me, judging by Sadie's behavior once she got back. Why did she come back so distant, telling me that she needed time to think? However, I didn't bother her too much with it, seeing as she obviously needed some privacy, and I assumed it was not alarming, or else she would have definitely told me.

Oh, and if you didn't get the hint the last time Sadie was narrating, I was feeding the stray cats while she was gone. I needed something to do, and those cats were starving, so I did something that took me out of my boredom and was also generous [I'm not bragging.]

I was done feeding the cats when Sadie told me, "I'm hungry."

I shared her feeling. "It's a good thing we're right behind a McDonald's, then."

My sister's sharp blue eyes narrowed, into a look of defensiveness and a bit of disgust. "American fast food is _so_ bloody disgusting." She complained, with all her mighty British pride [Ow! You know it's true. You nearly always rant about how American products are lesser than British ones, and you exasperate everyone with it!]

I remembered Sadie said before that she only went to American fast food restaurants back in Britain, but didn't like them. Therefore, she never stepped in one here in America, so I told her, "The fast food here is better than back in England."

"That doesn't-"

"And you can't argue against it, because you've never been in one here in the States."

Sadie rolled her eyes, and for the first time in a while, I beat Sadie in a dispute - an accomplishment at best. "Come on, get up," I said, "You're hungry, I'm hungry, let's eat."

"Can't we form a portal to somewhere else in Brooklyn? An actual four star restaurant or some place? Somewhere that's not crowded and noisy?" She continued to argue.

"I'm too hungry to travel with a portal again, and I assume _you're_ too hungry to even open one."

"Let's get a taxi, then! It's not as difficult as you're making it seem!"

Wow. Sadie had easily turned the argument around so that it would favor her. But I probably should have expected that [Sadie says she's a pro at it. Don't let your head get too inflated there, Sades.]

I gave in disappointingly, but the more thought I gave it, I realized that Sadie wanted to go to a quieter, more high-class restaurant not just because the food was better, but because she needed even more time to think. McDonald's isn't exactly the place where you can just sit down and contemplate.

We both picked the different restaurants we wanted, and after a short game of Rock-Paper-Scissors, I won.

Sadie groaned. "It better be a pleasant, relaxed place."

My place of choosing was a place called Fornino and judging by the last time I went there (with Zia), it had a calm, collected air to it, and served some fantastic pizza.

We took a taxi there like Sadie suggested, and after some waiting, we got a table on the rooftop.

* * *

><p>I won't tell you what we ordered in case you're really hungry, so I won't torture you with descriptions of food. [Sadie just told me that no one cares for my "nerdy" descriptions of things anyway, but I don't believe her.]<p>

A few minutes into our lunch, I noticed that Sadie was eating sporadically - she would start eating her food for a few moments, then stop and stare around, go back to eating, stop and stare, and so on.

With each minute passing, I was getting more curious as to what Bast told Sadie, because whatever it was, it was deeply affecting my sister and her eating habits.

"What's wrong?" I finally asked.

"Nothing - I get easily distracted by this amazing view you know." She lied, but I saw right through it.

"It's got to be something more than that. You said you were hungry, but you're not eating like a hungry person would."

She didn't say anything.

"It was something Bast said, wasn't it?"

She looked up at me, and her eyes held a brief look of fury. "What Bast said is none of your business."

What could our favorite feline possibly say to upset Sadie?

Right at that moment I recalled _who _had told Sadie about Bast and Nephthys in the first place.

Anubis, the Egyptian god of death, funerals, mummification, and the afterlife. [Be quiet, Sadie. Haven't you ever considered that these people might not know what he is the god of?]

I thought about it. Bast didn't like Anubis. Sadie did pretty obviously. Bast probably said something negative about Anubis. Nephthys was Anubis's mother.

All of this was about Anubis. [Sadie says I'm being too obvious. Well, of course.]

I feared that I might actually be right. But what about him? What exactly?

"Anubis." I noted.

"What?" Sadie's eyes became wide right after she happened to take another bite of her pizza.

"Nothing." I grumbled, hoping not alienate Sadie any further.

"You said Anubis."

"Yeah, I must be seeing things. I swear I could see a painting of a jackal over there, but no, it's just a dog." I lied.

Sadie looked at me warily, and now began to eat her food consistently.

I went back to my train of thought. I wondered and was really curious about what was going on between Bast, Nephthys, Sadie, and Anubis.

Those four could literally make an dramatic, high rated episode of some messed-up talk show. [Sadie's cursing me out right now. Sorry, sis.]

What do I think about Anubis? First off, he's pretty unpredictable. When we first met, he appeared to me with his jackal head and the rest of his human body. To Sadie, he looked like a melancholy teenage guy. It's also clear that he's indifferent to me when he's around Sadie. I don't like him that much honestly. I mean, the god generally gives off a depressed aura, and how could you really like somebody like that? Thoth himself said that Anubis is in a good mood once every millennium. Call me overprotective, but another reason is my sister herself. He's a five-thousand year old god, and she's barely fifteen. I always liked Walt better. He's cool, trustworthy, a good friend, and _not_ unpredictable. [Sadie says she totally disagrees with my insight, but whatever.]

Then again, I used to host Horus, and according to Sadie, Anubis doesn't like him, so that means they have a history together. Maybe that's why he's...unsettling around me.

I finished my food and waited for Sadie to finish hers.

You probably don't want to hear about my thoughts while I was waiting for Sadie; it was all worry about how things were running back at the mansion, Zia, and the like.

After she was done, we used the restrooms and then Sadie and I met up outside the restaurant.

"So." I said.

"So." Sadie repeated. "You know where we have to go next. Are you ready?"

I was, but I doubted in Sadie's well-being. "I am. We're going to Nephthys next, I assume. But the real question is, are _you_ ready?"

Sadie looked reluctant. "..."

"What?"

BANG!

Sadie and I both flipped around. Not this.

You guessed it: a magical encounter.

We hadn't had one of these in over a year.

"KANES!" a magician yelled, her staff and wand out. "The former members of the House of Life have not forgotten about your existences! We have been tracking you down for the past year, and sensed that you have had recent contact with the gods! Particularly you, Kane girl! We will destroy you both! Parasites!" As she said that, another magician appeared behind her, and that's when Sadie and I pulled our weapons from the Duat.

The first magician muttered a spell and after the hieroglyphics appeared over my head, I was thrown backwards, crashing into a brick wall.

Sadie stepped forward, and she must have been exceptionally angry, because when she yelled out her favorite spell with her staff, _ha-di,_ towards the second magician, he exploded, which proved him to be a shabti.

The shabti's pieces scattered all over the ground, and soon, they disappeared. That was the strongest Ha-Di I've ever seen Sadie perform, to date. [We all know you love destroying things, Sadie. It's true!]

The first magician fumed, and she proceeded to mutter a spell to stun Sadie temporarily, which worked, and then a spell that turned me into a turtle.

I look back at it, and I cringe that I failed to protect my sister. How was it possible? We both saved the world from a giant snake once, and then this happens.

Maybe I was a little rusty with dueling because I hadn't done it in over a year, but that was no excuse. I made it a promise to practice a lot more when we got back to the mansion.

Sadie, still stunned, and not able to see clearly, was trying to reach her staff which had fallen.

The magician cackled. "Fools! Sadie Kane, if perhaps you had not any suggestive contact with the god of funerals lately, I would not have made it here! You brat, how could you even think of associating with a god in that way?" She started saying a spell, which I couldn't hear. "Here, does this remind of you him, Miss Kane?"

A black jackal wearing Ancient Egyptian jewelry was summoned, and charged towards Sadie, who fortunately had gotten hold of her staff and tried to destroy it. When it failed, she ran towards me, grabbed me in my turtle-form, and continued shooting spells at both the magician and the jackal, all while running.

She managed to throw off the magician, who eventually lost sight of us. The jackal was still on us, though.

"Cute little pup!" Sadie exclaimed. "I don't think Anubis would like to know that you're doing this! _Ha-wi!"_

_Ha-wi,_ the Egyptian spell for "Strike", actually worked over Sadie's multiple _ha-di's._ The glyphs appeared over the jackal's head, and exploded on top of him, as he got struck.

That bought Sadie enough time, and soon she lost the jackal.

The problem now? Me.

Sadie settled, out of breath, on a nearby bench in a park, with me in the palm of her hands.

"There's my Anubis issue, and now you..."

So I _was_ right about Anubis. But _I _had to be taken care of at the moment. I was a freaking turtle.

**Review, please! **


	10. Making Sure Anubis is Okay

**I'm back! Not dead at all whatsoever. Writer's block, however, dear readers, is a real pain in the ass. It hindered my ideas for this story for _seven months. _Seven months, man. I'm not going to try to justify myself any further, it just is. The next update won't be so delayed, I promise. I already know what I want the next chapter to be composed of, which will contain a _degree_ of Sanubis...haha, read up till the end, there's a small surprise here. Enjoy! And much thanks for the reviews.**

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My brother was a reptile - a turtle, to be exact. Lovely, indeed.

As if I didn't have another problem at the moment.

After we lost the magician and the jackal she summoned, I plopped down on a nearby bench in a park, Carter literally in my hands. I didn't know what I was going to do with him.

I really felt for Carter. He, who was certainly a dork most times, was destined to be a future leader of the House of Life, and yet failed to protect me. I'm not undervaluing or blaming him - that's what I supposed he felt at the moment.

"Carter, dear, how am I going to fix you? You don't think you still have the power of Horus with you in there, right?" But all I said didn't work for anything. Carter slowly walked on my palms.

I was wondering if Carter knew how to transform from a turtle back to human like he could if he was a hawk, but it was no use. The reason why he could do it with the hawk was because it was Horus' sacred animal, but the turtle?

I had no idea.

Because of this, quite frankly, I had no other choice but to return Carter to Brooklyn House. I knew that Jaz, our resident healer, wouldn't fail to bring him back to his original form. Therefore, leaving Carter at the mansion so that he could heal over there, would be much more beneficial and time-preserving than bringing him along and not knowing what to do with him.

I petted Carter. "I know now," as I said that, he slowly turned his neck to look up at me. "Instead of wasting time not knowing what to do with you, I'll bring you home - Jaz will take care of you."

I couldn't tell what Carter was trying to tell me, but it was surely disagreement. [Thank you for confirming it, Carter.]

"Sorry about this, brother dear," I smiled a bit. "But it's the best option."

* * *

><p>"Oh...my." Jaz whispered, as I showed her Carter.<p>

"Yup..." I chuckled. "Do you think you'll be able to fix him?"

She pursed her lips. "Well, it's certainly not impossible..."

"Brilliant!" I exclaimed, relieved. I was about to head off then.

"But it will be difficult." Jaz finished.

"What's all this about? Where is Carter?"

Zia.

My brother's fiery girlfriend.

Bloody me, I had almost forgotten about her. How could I just arrive here with turtle-formed Carter, dump him here, and not mention him to his girlfriend?

I looked at Jaz, who gave me a sympathetic look, and then back at Zia, whose face showed both confusion and surprise. I wasn't too sure where to start, so Zia asked me: "Why are you back here? You said that you and Carter would take a week. Has something happened?" Her amber eyes soon caught sight of the Carter the Turtle, and eyeing him warily, she said: "Explanation?"

"Well..." I began. I didn't want to set the girl off-nobody does. And I didn't know how'd she react to the fact that the turtle was Carter, so I looked at Jaz again for some encouragement, and she nodded. "We're back here because...we had some troubles..."

"Explain."

"...We were being chased by a magician trying to catch us, and, ah, how I do say this...she very kindly made Carter into this little fellow." I took up Carter in my hands, petted him. Waited for Zia's reaction.

Zia again eyed the turtle, and hesitantly, walked over until she was in front me, asked for me to hand over the little creature. I did so, and she inspected him. I again looked at Jaz, who let out a small chuckle.

Pursing her lips, Zia seemed a little doubtful still, before asking for confirmation: "This is Carter, you're sure?"

"Bloody right sure. I witnessed his being turned into a turtle at the scene itself."

"And I'm assuming that you're dropping him off here to be healed-while you go back to do whatever it is you are supposed to be doing. Do I have that correct?"

"Correct, firegirl. It's _crucial_ for me to finish what we were doing."

Her amber eyes flashed, narrowed. "Be careful what you do and say, Sadie, to me and to others. The fact that this has happened is very telling of the circumstances you are in, even though I don't know them..." after she briefly caressed him, she handed Carter the turtle to Jaz, motioning her to go away to do her job, before stepping over a little closer to me, and I could feel her breathing, before she lowered her voice. "...Are you, ah, sure that you aren't having any major issues with the gods?" She looked at me in a way that demanded to be told the truth.

"Not major," I replied, although honestly, I couldn't exactly call the conflict going on between me, Bast, Nephthys, and Anubis as _minor,_ either. "But yes, there are some issues..."

"With whom?" Zia questioned. "Which gods? What exactly are these issues? Don't be so vague, Sadie, talk to me. I don't know if Carter told you I was upset that you two were leaving without giving any specific details. If he didn't, then now you know. Tell me everything, I want to know what you've gotten yourself into, so that I can help you."

Here I told her all that was necessary. My, ah, 'thing' with Anubis, how the gods knew about it, Bast's and Nephthys' wanting to speak with me, the 'talk' with Bast, up until right now. Zia was listening very carefully, her eyebrows raising at my admittance of being interested in Anubis, a little bit of surprise at hearing that Nephthys had business with me, and even pity reflecting from her softening orange eyes when she heard about Bast's disapproval. However, she expressed to me her true thoughts about it all a few moments after I was done, clearing her voice. "...Sadie, Sadie. Has it always been your nature to rebel against the rules? Although I don't support completely what the cat goddess has told you, you have to admit, she _did_ make some good points. The Jackal god? His intentions are always unclear, he is mysterious and perplexing. Mortals and gods are not supposed to associate in_...certain ways,_ as per the rules of Ma'at. Especially powerful magicians like you. And even though such a thing may occur without throwing off Ma'at, it is highly unlikely to be so and extremely risky-"

"Oh, please, afford me a break!" I pressed one of my hands to my right temple, I did not need another lecture about this. Bast had said enough, I didn't need Zia to echo her opinions. "Excuse me, but everything that you're saying, I've already heard." I was about to go off then, when the girl pulled me back, by the wrist, rather demandingly. "All right," she started over. "I won't repeat to you what you should have gotten by now. Especially considering that you're seeking to speak to the river goddess next..." she eyed me in a way that suggested, perhaps, trouble was to come? I wasn't sure, it was a brief flick of her eyes. She continued, "However...now that Carter is no longer able to help you...who will?"

That was something I didn't give much thought. To be honest, I wouldn't have asked him to accompany me had not Anubis made the suggestion. [Sorry if that stung, I didn't it intend for it to sound like that.] I was pretty sure that I didn't need a companion now, either. Zia clearly disagreed though.

"I will be going by myself." I confirmed.

Zia chuckled, then sighed. "There are some things about you that will never change...I'm surprised that Anubis is even..." she paused, as I gave her a glare. "All right, then. But are you _positively _sure, that you don't want me to come with you?"

"I need only see Nephthys, and from what we all know, she's one of the gods who gets _less_ involved in the all the others' trouble, so I don't think I'll be having a struggle in reaching her." Zia looked at me doubtfully, wanting a clearer answer. "No, I don't need you, thanks." I said.

* * *

><p>I decided to stay in the mansion for a few hours to regather myself and make sure that Carter the turtle was doing fine. I assume he was less concerned with his own well being and more anxious about the fact that I was going to leave again without him. I could see it in his yellow turtle eyes. But I tried to sooth him, as did Jaz and Zia.<p>

So far, the only people who knew that Carter and I had returned to the mansion were the two girls I just mentioned, as well as Walt, who found out a little later. Those were the three people who needed to immediately know the latest about my brother and me, to make sure we were okay and come to help us if we needed anything. I knew everyone else in the house assumed Carter and I were still gone, and I wanted it to remain that way, given that he was a reptile at the moment and I was going to head off again soon, thus I stayed out everyone's sight as best as I could.

Back in my room, a good two hours after we returned, I was laying sideways on my bed, a little exhausted. Not physically, of course, but emotionally. Today I'd just been told by one of my best friends-Bast-that Anubis and I could not happen. Not that I was going to heed that, obviously, but it still utterly _sucked_ to have such stigma attached to the mere idea of you and someone else being together. The other gods, I supposed, for the most part, felt the same way. And the rising nervousness, the tension that I felt, on having to soon find out what Nephthys thought about me and him, was the ultimate distress. She was his mother, for Ra's sake. She-her opinion, her approval, or her disapproval-would be the tiebreaker in all of this. At least that's how I felt about it, then.

As you'd expect, this sort of reflection eventually lead its way to thoughts of Anubis himself, that bloody jackal. Giving up on him or avoiding him from now on was of no use, not even an option for me, judging by his irresitability, and the potential we had together. I couldn't throw that away. [Carter says I could have, but you don't want me to bring up your dilemma with Zia, now do you? I thought so.] To add to that, what was Anubis thinking himself at this very moment, as I wondered for him, almost like an oppressed, heartbroken lover? What was he doing, for Ra's sake? It was strange, that when he told me that Bast and Nephthys wanted to see me, he didn't tell me what for, claiming he had not the slightest clue. But I thought, maybe, he was too embarrassed to tell what was going on, desiring for me find out on my own. And it came so suddenly too with Bast's firm, fierce opinions. I'd wish Anubis told me in advance though, so I would have braced myself for it, not have to go through this.

Bast...Anubis...Bast...Anubis...Bast...

_"Now,_ _I'm_ _sorry, but_ _I have to leave,_ _I actually have to take care of some business with the Dog himself..."_

Recalling Bast's last words before she waved me away made me rapidly sit up on my bed, almost losing my balance and plopping over.

When she said that, I got the instant feeling that she was going to hurt him. I'd forgotten about it since then, and it only just now sprang up. What was she _doing_ with him? What _did_ she do with him, in case she'd already finished? Was Anubis okay? My Ra, he had to be okay. Otherwise I'd place the blame on myself for not checking any sooner.

It didn't take long, then, for me to start getting ready again. In a rush, I involuntarily grabbed all my materials one by one, paying no attention to what. I hiked up and laced my combat boots in a real haste, too. Running to Jaz's healing room, I found her, Zia, and Carter, who was still a turtle. They all turned their necks at me, and seeing me in a mess, Jaz gaped a little, looking as if she was about to ask me what was wrong. Before she could do so, I rashly explained what I needed to do and how I needed to leave right at that moment. Running off before they could even consent to my departure, I soon caught a quick glance at Walt in the hallway, but I could not focus on him right then and there. Anubis, the bloody funeral god, had made himself my main concern. I dearly, dearly hoped I was not too late. I didn't want to see him injured in any way because of me, or worse, banished to the deep ends of the Duat just because of me.

* * *

><p>Now just outside the rusty iron gates of a Brooklyn cemetery, I sneaked myself in as stealthily as possible, trying to not alert any of the the owners or workers. I had to tip-toe once I gained access in, as my boots made such noise crunching over the fallen branches, leaves, and weeds scattered around. Making my way to a large, shady rowan tree, I settled down there for a few moments, inhaling, exhaling.<p>

My face down on my knees, I tried to bring forth the presence of Anubis. I had to direct my thoughts deeply into the Duat, into the Land of the Dead, which at this point was no longer a strenuous task, but it was indeed hard to do so then due to my increasing anxiety for Anubis. Gradually, however, I began to sense a presence from the Duat. It felt a bit weak, but it was there nonetheless. I concentrated in a little deeper, by doing that perhaps I could bring forth Anubis in his complete form.

I soon heard a canine bark, that distinctive of a jackal. I flipped my head up, eager to see Anubis okay and uninjured. Readily, I spotted a coal-black canine, with its pointy ears and long tail, jogging its way up to me. "Anubis!" I yelped out, but closer inspection brought me to realize that the jackal did not adorn any of Anubis' signature royal golds, and that its form was not as graceful or elegant as his was. The dog was merely one of Anubis' helpers. I sighed in defeat, wondering what message the dog had for me. It barked continuously once it was in front of me, but I had no clue what it was trying to tell me. I petted it behind the ears, however, still eager to get any news concerning his master.

"Where's Anubis?" I asked, wide-eyed and hopeful. "Is he fine? Does he need help? Is he hurt? Come on, you cute little pup, tell me something of use!"

Its barks soon died down, and the dog turned to look behind him. I furrowed my eyebrows, my sight following suit with his. Surely enough, there was the death god himself, head down, limping slowly over to us. He wore his ancient Egyptian kilt, which...was quite a bit ripped apart, and his golden collar piece was...lopsided, about to fall off. His armbands ripped open, his anklets slipping off...red scratches resembling red pen marks on his face, his torso, as well as a purple bruise on his temple...I knew this was Bast's doing, keeping well on her word; she did what she thought was necessary to do...though she didn't injure him as terribly as I'd originally imagined, he evidently put up a fight...and I just stayed there, staring, frozen, at the battered Anubis.

At the very minimum, thankfully, he wasn't sent to the depths of the Duat.

He sighed once nearing me, and his servant dog remained silent, waiting for an order. Anubis waved him away, and it was just the two of us now. Sitting down next to me, I was still too shocked for words. I could hardly manage an "are you okay?" Even though I was more than relieved to see him intact, his injuries made me want to scold myself endlessly.

"Sadie..." he begun, avoiding eye contact. "We really, really, must talk. I need to tell you certain things that I can no longer hide...and I hope you can say the same to me."


End file.
